We had to wake up at 4am to leave for the airport at 5.  (I feel like I’m never going to sleep on this trip.)  The ride to the airport took about 40 minutes (our bodyguard came with us). When we arrived only passengers could enter the airport so there were a bunch of people outside waiting.  We had to put our bags through security before entering the airport. Then we had to go through another security section in which women and men were separated and we were patted down. We checked our bags like normal and got our boarding passes, then we had to use the bathroom because there are none after security.  Again, the security line had one for men and one for women and we were all patted down again.  I did end up getting a full unopened bottle of water through, so that was nice. There were no announcements, but all of a sudden, everyone got up and stood in line near the door.  We all got on buses to get to the plane. It took three buses for all the passengers. We got an apple juice box and small bottle of water on the plane. 

When you are in Egypt and you use a public restroom, there is always someone there and you are expected to tip them. No matter what.  Sometimes there is a sign, but usually not. 

After landing in Aswan, we took our bus to where we could board a boat to explore the Isle of Isis.  It didn’t hit me that we were actually in a small boat on the Nile until the trip back!  The temple was actually moved from an island merely a few meters away, which you can see in this picture. 

Isis is one of the first nine gods in Egyptian religion.  She was married to her brother Osiris and her other brother, Seth was jealous, so he killed Osiris.  Isis found Osiris’ body in the NIle and brought him back to life (she is the goddess of magic).  Seth was not happy so he killed his brother again and chopped his body into 14 pieces.  One piece each went to each province in Egypt. The last piece, his penis, was eaten by a catfish after it was thrown in the Nile.  Isis gathered all his body parts, but could not find the last part.  She sat down on a boulder and cried.  Her tears created a flood in the Nile.  As she was crying the catfish came near her, puked out Osiris’ penis, it touched Isis’ elbow and she became pregnant with her son, Horus.  I love the drama of Egyptian gods.  

Horus and his uncle Seth battled three times. They had a draw in the first battle.  In the second, Horus lost his eye and Seth was hit in the groin.  Horus went to the Isle of Isis and his mother created a magic eye for him.  In the third battle Seth changed himself into another creature, but with his magical eye, Horus knew this and killed him with a spear.  Horus’ eye is well known and used throughout the world as a form of protection.  You see it all over Greece, for example, but they don’t call it Horus’ eye.  I love how ancient stories evolve and become something else for other cultures.    

The temple of Isis was reclaimed by Christians and this is why you see many of the gods images chiseled off the walls.  They also installed a Christian altar in the temple and carved crosses on the walls.  The French army used the temple for target practice and you can see bullet holes in the stones.  

 I can’t believe they moved this whole complex to another island entirely.  It was neat to see and our guide pointed out how it was influenced by the Romans in how it was built.  

We loaded our boat back to the mainland and I realized the they drive the boat as they drive on the roads.  In order to get a spot on the dock our boat actually rammed into another boat and pushed its way in between two boats.  Incredible.  

We stopped at an essence store before heading to the hotel.  They showed us how they blow Pyrex into cool bottles.  Then we went into a room and they gave us samples of all kinds of different scents and essential oils.  It was a neat experience. I liked the essence of lotus and Jef like the one of papyrus.  There was also a lotion of the Queen of Cleopatra that smelled lovely. We didn’t buy anything though.  It was quite expensive and I don’t think we would really use them. 

We ate lunch on the bus on the way to our hotel, which is on an island.  It has a beautiful view of the river. We are only here one night though.  Tomorrow we board a ship to cruise the NIle. 

For supper, we took a boat to Elephantine Island to have a traditional Nubian dinner in a Nubian house.  We first walked around the village and saw a lot of Bob Marley.  The dinner started with a delicious guava juice.  They offered us lentil soup, rice, eggplant, zucchini, potatoes, breaded chicken, and salad.  It was quite good. We all sat around on couches, while the family was in an adjacent living room, mostly kids.  The woman who made the food came to see us when she brought it in.  Their cousin sat and talked to us about Nubian culture.  It was very interesting to learn that their language is not written.  It is only spoken and passed down through generations.  In school they learn Arabic and English. Most of the kids speak Arabic and not Nubian. We had mint tea and what they called baklava for dessert.  It was neat to be able to ask someone about their culture.